#$@(&^$$&*#^* Bristol Finish!

[Roger Long]

Does anyone know how to make this #$@(&^$$&*#^* stuff work?

Back before I had the sense to ask questions on forums first, I believed the advertising and put this stuff on my teak. There's no going back because it won't burn off like varnish and my teak is too old and been scraped down too many times to take off another 1/16 inch of wood.

I was sucked in by the toughness and the ability to build up lots of coats in a day which is a big plus in our climate where you might wait a couple weeks or even months between varnish days. It bubbles like crazy if the brush ever touches the wet surface twice. Maybe Leonardo da Vinci had the brush skills to put it on but I'm sure no one born since does. I called them and asked for advice and they told me to be sure the surface was cooler than the liquid and to keep minimum overlaps on the brush strokes. That gets the bubbling down just to the pulling out your hair by the roots while screaming level.

The stuff runs like you wouldn't believe. Since you can't touch it a second time to stretch it out, you can't get it thin. My boat is an embarrassment of runs and sags but everyone who comes aboard just says "Wow, what beautiful teak!"

I thought about using something else for my new smoke head mounting block but realized that I would be out there with the cursed stuff anyway every year and would always have extra to use up. Besides I would be doing the new piece in the perfect conditions of the basement. I built up four coats, sanded out all the bubbles, drips, and runs. I then put on the thinnest finish coat I could manage, pouring it out into a shallow tray so I would only dip 1/8" of the brush. I just came back and it is covered with runs and sags.

This stuff should not be on the market.

 

[Ray Bowles]

Wow, Something is very wrong with the mixing ratios or something else in the process. I have used Bristol for over 10 years and it has been flawless. It was on our 38' Island Packet in the Bahamas and Keys for 6 years without any failures.
I also use it here in NE Washington State with the same results.
When I use it it has always been in a temp range of 74 to 90 degrees. I have mixed it to the exact ratios called for and have been able to apply 5 to 6 coats without problems. If the mixture is too thick it will pull and bunch up and bubbles can occure because of this. If the wood being covered has been chemically treated in your prep it is possible that it might be de-gassing, thus causing bubbles. If the wood is wet I would think that could be a problem.
I used a foam brush to apply all coats and they must be applied before the last coat dries. If there were runs then it was way too thin or there was too much applied too fast.
Sorry I can't help more but my experence was very good and many of the guys that I sail with also use it. It lasts forever.
The only thing you can do now is to lightly sand out the bad spots and start over. The good thing about the product is that it recovers bad areas very well and blends them in with the rest.
Lastly, Call the company. The are very good to work with and can probably help you figure out what to do now.
Ray

 

[sailingdog]

I think it is the temperature that Roger is working at that is causing all the trouble. It can't be more than 60-70˚ where he's working is my guess, considering that he's in Maine.

 

[Roger Long]

Lastly, Call the company.

I'm glad to hear that it can work because it is incredibly durable as you say. I called the company twice a few years ago. They are very nice and responsive but nothing they had to say did more than slightly improve the situation. I mix it as precisely as I can working to a sharp pencil line.

If it is working for you, than I think Dog is right and it's a temperature issue. One of the reasons I started with it was that it was advertised as being suitable for low temperature application.

I guess I'll just have to leave the teak and sail down to the Bahamas next fall and try again

 

[alexco38]

Warm up the cabin with a heater first? And why are you working on it in such cold season.

That stuff is easy to go on an it last. You can use organic stripper to start over again. It's next to impossible to fix bubbles and drips. As you sand them they leave a ridge that shows.

 

[higgs]

I can't get the stuff to work well for me. Perhaps I am not smart enough to follow their instructions. At any rate, I get lots of little bubbles and the stuff starts to degrade in a few months in northern climes. I have called the company, but still have problems after 4 years of trying to use the stuff. I have given up and am switching over to cetol.

 

[Ray Bowles]

Roger & Higgs,
Temp is a real problem but here's another thought. Wait and apply later in the season. If the prep is done and if you really want the durability of Bristol then it's worth waiting until later to apply. It is really possible to get 6 coats on in 1 day. Plan to keep the size of the area to be coated no larger than what you can do in 30 minutes. Mask off the area to coated and in 30 minutes you can paint a heck of a lot of trim. If the temp is around 80 degrees and has been there for at least 1 hour then you should be able to paint this area and then start on the next coat after the first is done. This way the coating hasn't dried enough for the amine (sp)finish to appear and you can apply the next coat. Now you have a chemical bond between coats rather than a mechanical bond. If you wait until the previous coat is dry then you must wash off or remove the amine blush or the next coat will be really screwed up. I found that painting in cooler temps just didn't work out with a look that I wanted for the next 6 years.
Trying to repair the areas that you have already had problems with might not be as hard as you think. Since this product flows so well I think that if you hand sand the worst areas the product will flow enough to cover-up the problems. Well masking all the pieces to be covered makes this foam brush way really work well.
A foam brush allows you to make a 1 pass coat each time. A paint brush makes me want to keep working the coat I am putting on which softens the previous coat and starts to pull it up making a mess. Don't try to spread the "paint" all around with the foam pad. Just load it up well and make a smooth pass down the piece, start over with the next pass etc. until the pad isn't applying product anymore. Dip the pad in new paint and apply again. This product does'nt need to be painted on and worked in. It will self level and spread itself. Over working by using many brush strokes will pull the last coat off. Use the largest pad that will fit the area to be painted. I found a 3", 2" and 1" worked best. Buy plenty because if they dry out enough to stiffen up then theiir no good.
"Bristol" works so well that it is worth the wait for warm temps.
Once the hardener is opened and used it starts to harden. After wintering over it might need replacing. The company sells the hardener only so you can keep using the "paint" portion 2, 3 or 4 years later for other projects.

If I can answer any other questions just ask.

 

[Roger Long]

Wait and apply later in the season.

I'm working on a small piece inside right now. It isn't going to be any warmer later in the season. All of your other suggestions are exactly what I am doing.

See the part and how I solved the running problem here:

http://www.rogerlongboats.com/videos/BristolFinish.wmv

http://www.rogerlongboats.com/videos/BristolFinish.wmvI will agree though that, once the cursing is over, you've discovered that almost no one notices the runs, and you've learned to just let your eyes run over the boat quickly instead of looking critically at the finish, it's great. My youngest son used to stand up on the Dorade box in his sneakers full of grit from shore and twist his feet with nervous energy until I yelled at him. You still can't see any scratches or marks. I skipped any re-finishing last year and everything still looks about as it did the year before. All those runs and drips are sort of like chafing strips

 

[Rick Sylvester]

Hey Roger, I used that stuff for about three years

and I think I can make a couple of semi-substantiated comments.

1. I found it to be REALLY fussy. It could be made to work but it wasn't very forgiving.

2. It was tough as nails and could last longer than spar varnish (polyurethane I think.) Unfortunately, it could still be pranged by a dropped winch handle or whatever (which happens with embarrassing frequency on my boat) and I found BF to be decidedly less forgiving than varnish to repair.

3. Not only was BF tough, I found it to be more brittle so that edges would wick moisture which would then detach the finish from the wood. Handrails were always a problem.

4. As Ray says, the hardener won't store. The problem is that you've got to buy more even if all you want to do is repair a ding. Bummer.

I'll say that used in the right applications Bristol is a good thing. Also, the problems I had probably had a lot to do with my less-than-stellar varnishing technique. In any case, I've switched to the any-idiot-can-do-it mixture of Captains and Penetrol.

Just my two cents, which is about what it's worth

 

[higgs]

I have spent far too many hours using this shit and getting lousy results despite calls to the company. I have stripped, re stripped, and still it degrades and bubbles. I am not smart enough to use this stuff.

 

[John Howitt]

I have been using Bristol on the outside teak on my hunter 29.5 and I love it.
Pull the brush really slow, and only once,
Put on about 5 coats and leave for a few days. Use a hard block and 220 sandpaper to level the finish and remove any defects.
remember that by sanding you have just removed two coats.
apply a few more and you should be done.
If not you can rub with steel wool or a scotch brite pad.and go again.
Most people over sand, and cut trough the finish completely.
It is very important that the tempurature is going DOWN.
Bubbles are more likely to happen when the temp is increasing.
You can also buy a cheap aerosol propelled sprayer for about $20.00. Thin No more than 10%.
Varnishing is an art . It can not be rushed.
Good luck and great results.